I nodded my head and said, "Alright, I will not disclose anything." We began following Cain once again. As we passed through the door, I noticed nothing but darkness on both sides—walls on the right and left.
"Just keep moving forward. Soon, you will see the light," Cain said.
It felt like more than twenty minutes of walking when my body suddenly became nauseous. I wondered to myself, What is this feeling? My ears and head began to ring.
"What's going on, Cain?" I asked, but before he could respond, I wondered to myself, Are we going up or down? I had no idea we were descending this entire time.
"I think you've figured it out. This place isn't what you think. It's madness, created for one purpose, and the government wants as few people as possible to know about it," Cain explained.
"The government?" I turned my head, hoping to confront Xavier, who knew I hated them.
"Don't turn your head. Keep moving forward, Ash," Xavier said, nudging me.
So, I moved past my grudges and continued into the darkness.
Out of the darkness and into the light, my eyes stung. In front of me stood Cain, confronted by two more people with camo and guns strapped to their hips.
Walking past the two guards, I got a better look at my surroundings. The place was massive, open like a large football field. Domes, like small tents, dotted the cave. At the center stood the largest dome building—at least, a building of sorts, which I began to follow Cain and Xavier into.
Cain opened the door to the central building. Upon entering the domes, I thought I would be impressed, but what I saw was beyond anything I could have imagined. The labs were expansive, filled with all kinds of equipment, including mini quantum computers. These tools were the stuff of fantasy, things only the largest, government-funded labs could possess. It was insane that I was even allowed to be here.
"Now, before you start touching all my toys, I want you to meet two more people of mine. If you say yes to this job, you'll be working with them," Cain said.
"Hello, my name is Ash," I introduced myself. The girl was cute. Her red ginger hair and green eyes gave off an ethereal aura. What was most surprising was her height—she was tall for a girl, nearly six feet, just under my nose.
"Hello, Ash. My name is Faya," she said with a smile.
"So, you're Ash, the boy wonder Xavier has been waiting for," the short but broad man said. He looked like he'd been hitting the gym hard.
He extended his hand. "Hello, Ash. My name is Vin, but you can call me Vinny," he said with a grin. These people seemed nice, and maybe this was where my life was truly going to begin.
We all began chatting, sharing stories. They told me how they knew Xavier—it was fun and relaxing. But I still didn't understand the true nature of what they were doing. It seemed they wanted me to make my decision before telling me more.
"Cain, I want to know more, but it seems like I need to confirm my choice to be here first, right?" I asked.
"Yes, if you want to know more, you need to tell me you're in," he said, and everyone stopped talking. The room became silent as everyone turned their gaze on me.
"Alright, I think it would be nice. Let's do this," I said, grinning. I blushed slightly when everyone stared blankly at me.
"I think the boy was trying to say he'd love to join us," Vin said with a wink.
"Then it's final. You're now part of the great cause. The rebirth of the truth and the wonder of the universe will be within your sight. Do you wish to see it?" Cain said.
I nodded eagerly, trying to contain my excitement. After Cain told everyone to get back to work, I was left alone with him while Xavier said he'd start walking back to the entrance.
"Ash, follow me," Cain said. Soon, we reached the inner part of the largest dome. In front of Cain was a silver sphere of some kind, as large as an elephant, enclosed by a glass cage.
Looking at the sphere, Cain asked me, "Now, tell me, Ash, what is the truth?"
"The truth to what?" I asked, confused.
"The truth to everything," he said, still staring at the cage.
"I don't have an answer for that. How could I know the truth if I don't even understand myself?" I replied.
"Good answer, Ash. You're smart, but maybe if you saw the truth, you would understand," he said, raising his hands.
On his left was a red lever, which I had not noticed until now.
Cain pulled the lever down, causing a rhythmic shake that moved pebbles and even ruffled my hair. It was crazy. What is this? I thought to myself. What has such force?
Before I could process my thoughts, the silver sphere began to melt, falling apart like ice. It revealed something beyond words. At first, it seemed like an embodiment of darkness, a vast emptiness—like the pit of hell was in front of me. It felt like death itself. But the more I looked, the more it began to change. At first, I thought I was going crazy, but the darkness soon lightened, revealing something… else.
"Do you see it, Ash? Do you see the truth?" Cain asked, his eyes locked on the vast expanse of truth before us.
"Yes, I see it. But how... how can we see it?" I was lost, dumbfounded, standing in a pit of confusion. Everything I had studied about the laws of the universe seemed to fade away, leaving me only with more questions.
"It's not that we can see it. It's that the universe has let us see it. The truth of all things—the meaning of the universe and the mysteries that lie dormant, waiting for us to explore," he said, looking back at me.
"Dark Energy, the invisible truth of the universe. It has been revealed to us," I said in awe.